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It does make since as a marketing plot. It's just more reason for someone to enter a McD's who ordinarily would not.
For example, I have an ipod touch. There are numerous times I've drove around in a different city where I had to keep a lookout for a Starbucks so I could use their wifi to look up an address on google maps. A few times I wound buying a cookie or something. Had they not had free wifi I would have never made those purchases.

Nice try, but that's a different market. At McDs, they want to lure you in and keep you there as long as possible. Even if you don't order anything, at least you will be immersed in their branding. The airport is just the opposite - they have a *captive* audience, and they're the only game in town. That's why a soda at the airport costs 5.00 while the same one at McDs costs $.79. Basic supply and demand.

I was waiting for a flight at Dulles International in Virginia just last week and the Boingo hotspot there was free. Google basically paid for wifi for everyone as a "holiday gift" (read, advertising). No strings attached either. Made the 2 hour wait less painful.

I've noticed that, in general, the more expensive a place is the more likely it is to charge for WiFi. Hotels are especially bad about this. Inexpensive chains usually offer free WiFi whereas expensive hotels generally charge. Hiltons, in particular, often charge unbelievable rates: $15/night in some hotels. Far from competition bringing the price down, some have actually increased their rates over the years; $10/night used to be fairly standard. As best I can figure, they're targeting business travelers with expense accounts. For example, many hotels charge extra for the ability to use a VPN, which makes no technical sense but is a great way to price discriminate.

I've also found that the terrible WiFi rates at many high-end hotels actually make sites like Priceline less useful. Yeah, you might get a great rate on a 4-star hotel, but when you figure in the cost of WiFi and parking it often ends up being nearly a wash. I think in the end it'll actually be the cell phone companies that kill overpriced WiFi. If you can use your tethered cell phone, why pay for WiFi? Sure a tethered data plan might be $60/month, but that's for 30 days compared to just 4 nights of WiFi at a Hilton.

Starbucks and McDonalds business models are based on rapid customer turnover. Get 'em in, get 'em fed/caffeinated, get 'em out.

My local McDonalds remolded early this year into a McCafe. Coffee, some pastry, the wifi in addition to the standard fat pills. The model (for that one) does not quite seem to be the hurry-in/hurry-out model.

I wouldn't doubt there's some of that in there, but should it bother me? All meat comes from the inside of an animal, which is not a place you would normally want to spend a lot of time. That's not to say all meat is equal in taste or texture, but ground beef is inherently what it is - pre-chewed bits of protein and fat. Is that gross? Who's to say, I'm made of protein and fat also. I think it's pretty incredible what you can get for a buck or two.

Why 100% pure beef. At least, some of them contain 100% pure beef. Which is kind of like saying that they are not 100% pure beef since even the most diluted mixture contains 100% of whatever is being diluted.